To any and every father who is getting ready to watch their daughter run off and say I do, this letter is for you.
They say a father is the first love of a woman’s life, and this couldn’t ring more true. You’re the man who was there when the bride said her first words. You watched her take her very first steps and now you’re about to watch her take on the next biggest step of her life, the ones that mean she’s growing up. But growing up doesn’t mean moving on. It doesn’t mean she’s out of your hands for good.
Whether or not you feel this way, she will always need you. Even if she’s Miss Independent, a daughter needs a father. Because a father puts together the pieces as to why a daughter is the way she is.
Maybe the bride got her eyes from her dad, the same way she found her morals and personal beliefs. Maybe you can see the father of a bride in her thick hair, or her witty sense of humor.
Most importantly, the way a father loves is the way a daughter will love. Maybe he’s quiet with his feelings, but he’s attached no matter what. A father and daughter may yell, scream and fight but at the end of the day what keeps them glued together is that unconditional love for one another.
This is how a bride is going to enter her husband’s life and start a whole new chapter with him. For this, and for many more things, it is all thanks to the father.
So father of the soon-to-be-bride, we couldn’t have done this without you. Your daughter is a reflection of everything you have learned, done and have accomplished in this world. You may be proud of the bride but have no doubt about it, the bride and many more people are so proud of you.
So you shouldn’t see this as losing your little girl. She may have grown up, but she couldn’t have done it without you. You taught her how to love and the love she carries with her will always be a token from you.